Britain: An official handbook > 1966

272 BRITAIN: AN OFFICIAL HANDBOOK
exhibitions and publicises Scottish trade and industry. The special problems
of the seven crofting counties of Scotland (see p. 343) are the concern of a
public authority, the Highlands and Islands Development Board. This was
set up to formulate programmes of work and execute any approved proposals;
as well as giving advice or financial help, it can acquire land and start
businesses. There are several voluntary associations concerned with the
needs of Welsh industry as a whole, but the most similar in aims and
constitution to the Scottish Council is the Development Corporation for
Wales, founded in 1959. In Northern Ireland the Northern Ireland Economic
Council was set up in 1965 to assist in furthering economic growth. The
chairman is the Minister of Commerce and the membership includes repre¬
sentatives of industry, commerce and the trade unions.
In England certain regions and cities have established industrial develop¬
ment associations which are concerned with studying local industrial needs
and with trying to attract suitable industry. These associations are sponsored
mainly by local authorities and trade associations, but may also include
firms, financial and commercial interests, and individuals in their membership.
Government The extent to which the responsible minister has power over the working
and the of the boards which have been set up to run the nationalised industries varies
Nationalised fr0m industry to industry, but two features are common to almost all of them.
Industries First, the minister appoints (and may dismiss) the chairman and members
of each board, and secondly, he has power to give general directions as to
how the industry should be run, but does not interfere in day-to-day manage¬
ment. It is usually also laid down that the board shall give to the minister
any information, statistics and financial accounts which he may require. In
practice, as the responsible minister is kept fully informed and major policy
decisions are reached in consultation with him, there is very seldom occasion
for him to issue a formal directive.
The minister also has financial powers and responsibilities. The usual
statutory requirement is that the board is required to conduct its business so
that receipts at least balance outgoings taking one year with another. The
responsible minister is usually empowered (subject to Treasury approval) to
say what shall be done with any surplus revenues which may accrue. As
regards finance of capital expenditure, the present system is that such finance
as cannot be met from internal sources is mainly provided, in the form of
interest-earning loans, by the minister from the Exchequer, bank advances
being used only for normal requirements of short-term capital.
The minister responsible for each nationalised industry must take steps to
see that the interests of the industry’s customers are protected. This is usually
done by the establishment of representative consumers’ councils to consider
complaints and suggestions made to them, and to advise the board or the
minister on the changes they think desirable.
Government policy towards these industries is subject to the approval of
Parliament. Opportunities for parliamentary discussion are afforded by
debates, including debates on their annual reports and accounts, and by
answers to parliamentary questions, which, in principle, are admissible only
if concerned with policy rather than details of administration.
In a White Paper (Cmnd. 1337) issued in April 1961 the Government out¬
lined certain general principles which it believed had to be applied for the
administration of the nationalised industries to be efficient. Among them were
a balancing of revenue accounts over a five-year period, a closer definition 01
the financial and economic obligations of the industries, and greater freedom